


Memories are Made of These

by orphan_account



Category: Star Trek: The Original Series
Genre: Angst, F/M, Fade to Black, Fix-It, Romance, Treat and Trick, Trick or Treat 2017, slight AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-24
Updated: 2017-10-24
Packaged: 2019-01-22 15:43:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,130
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12485096
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Lieutenant Commander Montgomery Scott discovers there's more to a starship than the Engine Room, when he and Communications Officer Lieutenant Nyota Uhura share romance and a secret.





	Memories are Made of These

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lah_mrh](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lah_mrh/gifts).



> For the purpose of this story, the order of "Wolf in the Fold" (2.14) by Robert Bloch and "The Changeling" (2.03) by John Meredyth Lucas have been transposed.

The tranquilizer that Dr. Leonard McCoy had injected the crew with still had a few more hours before its effects would wear off completely. In the psychological state in which the men and women of the starship _Enterprise_ had fallen, there was little for the very much still sober Captain and Chief Science Officer to do except re-establish and maintain a synchronous orbit around Argellius II.

 _While the crew might currently be one of the happiest in Star Fleet,_ thought Kirk, _it didn’t pay to take chances with the safety of the ship._ So, he had ordered downtime for all non-essential personnel, as well as his Chief Engineer Lieutenant Commander Montgomery Scott, who, though tranquilized, still had a few demons to put to rest. Scotty, of course, had protested the order as always preferring to be near _his_ engines, but Kirk had been adamant.

 

*.*.*.*.*

 

Still grumbling to himself about his Captain’s order, Lt. Cmdr. Scott entered one of the ship’s recreation rooms. He was unsurprised to see the somewhat inebriated faces of his crewmates looking at him and smiling in welcome; their conviviality in asking him to join them in their latest distractions was unexpected…and unwanted. But, he smiled cordially and nodded his thanks. At the moment, all he desired was a place where he could sit undisturbed and read from the latest tech manual.

He glanced across the room again, and saw a vacant seat beside the ship’s Communications Officer, Lt. Uhura. The Lieutenant seemed to be engrossed in reading something, and he felt that sitting beside her in companionable silence was his best option.

Striding through the crowded room to reach her table took longer than expected; he’d had to extricate himself from differing groups, who all wanted him to join them. _It’s like a damned Star Fleet cocktail party,_ he thought.

When he reached her table, he was amazed that she remained unaware of his presence, and had jumped slightly when he asked if he could join her.

“Oh, Mr. Scott, I’m sorry.” She looked up at him, as though seeing him for the first time. “Certainly.” She patted the seat beside her.

As Lt. Cmdr. Scott took his seat, he smiled at her and said, “That must have been some interesting novel you were reading, Lieutenant.”

She returned his smile, pointed at her tablet, and said, “Warp field theory and mechanics.”

Scott quirked an eyebrow, somewhat surprised—though quite impressed—by her choice of reading material.

Uhura shifted slightly, adding, “I probably should have picked a more appropriate place for my studies, but between being confined to my cabin by Dr. McCoy for the last week due to a mild cold(1), and the effects of the tranquilizer, I just needed to be around people for a little while.”

“Aye, I can understand that.” Scott nodded. “But what prompted you to choose such a complex topic?”

“Promise you won’t pass judgment…”

The Chief Engineer tried to muster a serious expression; he wasn’t certain, though, at how well he succeeded: he’d had 75-year-old scotch that hadn’t hit him as hard as the Doctor’s medical concoction. “Of course not.”

“I’ve grown bored with communications: I’d like to use my expertise for something a bit more challenging. Maybe even a command of my own some day—of course that’s unlikely to happen.”(2)

The goal wasn’t unrealistic, but at this point in time, it wasn’t considered feasible: “Well, if Star Fleet Command would get their heads out of their collective as—“ He cut the word off abruptly, not wanting to embarrass himself in front of someone whose respect he cherished.

The Lieutenant’s face lit up at the Commander’s chivalry, and a mischievous look passed across her face. She reached under the table, and gently fingered her way between Scotty’s thighs. The blush that rose up his face—nearly as red as his tunic—and the fact that he didn’t pull her hand away told her more than words ever could. “There are only three things separating me from a command position, after all.”

Regaining his voice, as a warmth and hardness spread through his loins, “It’ll happen someday. Look at old Earth, and how long it took the major nation states to elect or appoint women leaders: it wasn’t until 1979 that the UK elected its first woman Prime Minister, and another thirty-seven years before the United States would elect a woman President; it would be well into the 21st Century before Russia and China finally came around.(3) In the meantime, I’d be honored to help with your studies to be Star Fleet’s first woman Captain.”

Uhura’s eyes locked onto his, as she replied dreamily, “I’d like that very much, but not here…”

“Then, where?”

“My cabin?”

Scott paused, unsure of how much the Lieutenant’s actions were motivated by the medication’s affects, and how much the walls of military decorum between them might be tumbling. “Lt. Uhura, are ye sure this is a wise idea?”

She slid her hand from between his thighs and into his, as she replied, “Lt. Cmdr. Scott, at a moment like this, I think it would be proper protocol to call me Nyota.”

 

*.*.*.*.*

 

Scott awoke groggily, feeling the after effects from both the tranquilizer having worn off, and one of the most emotionally and sexually fulfilling encounters he’d ever had. Nyota was snuggled against his chest, and he could feel the gentle rhythms of her breath rising and falling. The Lieutenant had always seemed so matter-of-fact and business-like with him while on duty that he’d never noticed her subtle flirtations when they were off duty.

 _Let’s be honest, Scotty,_ he thought, _if it wasn’t a dilithium matrix or warp nacelle you’d be oblivious to it. How in God’s name did you become so damned lucky?_

She opened her eyes, and stared lovingly at him. “Does your offer still hold to tutor me, Mr. Scott?”

He took one of her hands, softly kissing the tips of her fingers. “Scotty, please, Nyota.”

She noticed that his burr had increased.

“O’ course it does. Though, if we have another session like last night, I canna’ be held responsible for any lapses in your education. Agreed?”

She brushed her free hand along his face feeling the slight stubble there, and whispered, “Agreed.”

 

*.*.*.*.*

 

They had both agreed to handle their relationship discreetly. Tutoring a subordinate officer was one thing, but juggling a romance in Star Fleet was another matter altogether. While the Captain was quite liberal in his personnel policies, neither Nyota nor Scotty wanted to force Kirk’s hand when it came to duty assignments or away missions.

Though, when even Mr. Spock raised an eyebrow at what was little more than some friendly on bridge banter between them, it was apparent that their closely guarded secret wasn’t. They’d made the decision to acknowledge their romance to the Captain, following the next senior staff meeting, which was due to occur after the _Enterprise_ ’s tour of the Malurian System.

That’s when all hell broke loose.

 

*.*.*.*.*

 

After the devastating attacks from the 21st Century _Nomad_ interstellar probe, the Captain was left with little choice but to teleport the device aboard—if only to keep it from destroying the _Enterprise._ For some unfathomable reason, the probe believed that Captain Kirk was its creator, and was treating him with deference. However, _Nomad_ didn’t have the same regard when it came to the rest of the _Enterprise_ crew or the ship itself—even when it was led to believe that both were the Captain’s creations.

The thing had come to the bridge via the turbolift, apparently attracted by and interested in Nyota’s singing; her song had been for him, and it stirred Scotty’s passion for her even deeper.

 _Nomad_ had queried Nyota on what she was doing, and as she tried to explain music to the device, a ray engulfed her. Rising to her defense, Scotty advanced on the machine: the last thing he could remember was being blasted by an energy pulse, before everything went black.

 

*.*.*.*.*

 

Lt. Cmdr. Montgomery Scott awoke in sickbay. As Dr. McCoy explained it, somehow that damned metallic beastie had killed him; yet was able to “repair” him and return him to life. But what it had done to Nyota—his beloved Nyota—was worse: it had completely erased her mind and all its attendant memories. McCoy and Nurse Christine Chapel had assured him that she could be re-educated.

“And where exactly does that leave her, Doctor?” asked Mr. Scott.

McCoy was taken aback at the bitterness in Scott’s voice.

“She’ll be fine, Scotty. Her aptitude for math and science are already beginning to show.”

“Ye, do na’ understand, Doctor. A person is the sum of their life’s experiences—the good and the bad. Right now, the Lieutenant’s life begins and ends in sickbay, whether or not ye can return her to duty; she won’t ever be the Nyota Uhura any of us knew.”(4) Scott fought to control his voice, and the rage that was threatening to erupt. Right now, there were things that needed to be done regarding _Nomad;_ he had his duty to perform for his Captain and ship. While never being a God-believing man, he swore to whatever deity that was in hearing range that he’d find some way of making her whole again. _I’ll make your dream happen somehow, me darlin’._

 

*.*.*.*.*

 

With _Nomad_ finally destroyed—not by any of the crew per se, but by having its logic overpowered and disproved—Lt. Cmdr. Scott could finally put his efforts toward returning to Nyota some semblance of her past life. He knew now how much he loved her, because he couldn’t—and wouldn’t—push himself on the stranger in sickbay. In her fragile frame of mind, it would be so easy, but he’d never subject her to that: it would be monstrous.

Alone in his cabin, which now seemed like a prison and not the respite he used to find it, he thought on each treasured moment they shared…all of them now, seeming all-too-brief. He was an engineer, not a bloody doctor! What knowledge did he possess that even McCoy and M’Benga didn’t have or considered?

Wracking his brain for a solution to returning Nyota’s lost memories, the answer almost slipped unnoticed amongst all the ideas swirling about in his head. _It might work,_ he thought, _if the transporter pattern buffers haven’t been purged. And if I can make the necessary adjustments to one of the surgical instruments._

He used the internal communications device to have Drs. McCoy and M’Benga meet him in sickbay.

 

*.*.*.*.*

 

“Engrams,” Scott began, by way of explanation. “We have the Lieutenant’s engrams in the transporter pattern buffers.”

“Scotty, you want us to attempt an engramatic transfer? Do you have any idea how dangerous that could be?”

“I agree with Dr. McCoy,” said M’Benga, “such a procedure could leave Lt. Uhura with no mind at all.”

“’Tis better than what you’re willing to leave her as,” replied the Lieutenant Commander.

“Mr. Scott, I know your personal feelings regarding the Lieutenant—”

“This is not some selfish whim, Doctor,” interrupted Scott, “the buffer pattern is from before our trip to Argellius II. It was only luck that it was still in memory. She’ll have no knowledge of our relationship, but it’s a small price to pay to give her back her own life.”

McCoy nodded. “I’ll have to clear it with the Captain. You understand that he could veto the whole procedure?”

“Aye, I do.”

 

*.*.*.*.*

 

Lt. Uhura entered the bridge to take her station for the first time in over a month. Dr. McCoy had explained that there would be some gaps in her memory that might never be recovered— _simply one of the dangers involved in being in Star Fleet,_ she thought. It felt good to finally be able to return to duty. She nodded a greeting to her fellow bridge officers. For some reason she didn’t understand, Mr. Scott avoided making eye contact with her. But before she could consider the matter, the Captain had offered his official welcome back to duty, then ordered her to contact Starbase 23.

 Lt. Cmdr. Scott sat at his station, his back rigid and his hands trembling slightly. For a small window of time, he'd found fulfillment in something other than _his_ engines—and he'd lost it. Perhaps, he and Nyota could rekindle their relationship; they were, after all, still friends. But, even then, things would be different: this time, there would be no tranquilizer to tear down their inhibitions. And, being honest with himself, he wasn't certain if he could bear losing her a second time; once was painful enough. He had his memories—memories enough for the both of them—and maybe those were all he was entitled to…

 

_~ Finis ~_

**Author's Note:**

> (1) A mild fix-it to explain why Lt. Uhura didn't appear in "Wolf in the Fold"; also referencing the fact that, at least according to Dr. McCoy, medicine had still yet to discover a cure for the common cold.
> 
> (2) Reference to "Turnabout Intruder" (3.24) by Gene Roddenberry and Arthur H. Singer.
> 
> (3) Though contradicting "Space Seed" (1.22) by Gene L. Coon and Carey Wilber, I went with the Eugenics War(s) taking place later in the 21st Century based on the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episodes "Past Tense, Parts 1 and 2" (3.11 and 3.12) by Ira Steven Behr and Robert Hewitt Wolfe, and "Doctor Bashir, I Presume?" (5.16) by Jimmy Diggs and Ronald D. Moore; and the Star Trek: Voyager episode "Future’s End, Parts 1 and 2" (3.08 and 3.09) by Brannon Bragga and Joe Menosky. 
> 
> (4) I always felt that "The Changeling" (2.03) didn’t provide a decent explanation for Lt. Uhura’s recovery of a lifetime worth of memories. This was my attempt to fix that oversight.
> 
> Disclaimer: Star Trek is a registered trademark of Viacom/CBS Television Studios. This work of fan fiction is not meant in any way to infringe on copyrights already held by these companies and/or their subsidiaries.


End file.
